Although Lando Norris has previously admitted that he is afraid of who will run McLaren this season, the Briton hopes McLaren gets it right and he finds himself against Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.
Last season, Norris had a brief taste of what it would be like to race for victories, the McLaren rider second to his team-mate in the Italian Grand Prix, while in Russia the weather gods ruined his chances.
However, those were his only two real chances at the very sharp end of the field.
While Hamilton and Verstappen raced for the world title, both in their own battle, Norris was up against the Ferrari drivers as McLaren took over the Scuderia for third in the championship.
This year, hoping Norris is involved in more battles at the front, the Briton has decided to show the world that he has the ability to compete against the likes of Hamilton and the reigning world champion Verstappen.
“Hopefully we’re in a slightly faster car this year,” he told The Guardian.
“Now it’s just about me trying to show everyone the best driver I can be, and that I’m good enough to go up against Lewis and Max.”
First team selfie of the year? BUSINESSED!
Thanks you, @Android. 🤳 pic.twitter.com/n1XZvInV1z
– McLaren (@ McLarenF1) March 17, 2022
While the 2022 season marks Norris’ fourth season on the grid, for his compatriot Hamilton it is season number 16.
With the Mercedes driver saying every year that there is more to it, more to learn, Norris says, if that is true of Hamilton, he himself has even more room to grow.
“Every year you learn something new and, as Lewis said, he has come back better than ever,” he said, “but there is more room for improvement for me than there is for him …
“So the best thing yet to come is to be the complete driver is the goal, but I know it’s not easy to do.”
The 22-year-old touched down his Russian Grand Prix loss, Norris leading the race as with five laps to go, the rain fell.
He tried to stay out on slippery tires, but it turned out to be an almost catastrophic event with Hamilton, who was stopped for wet tires, crashing through as the McLaren pilot slipped and slid around the circuit.
Norris finished the Grand Prix in a disappointing seventh place.
“A certain element of it I want to block because it just does not make me feel happy, it’s not like when I think about it and go, ‘Ahh, that was a good time,'” he says.
“It’s good that I learned things but it was just a race. It will not win me the championship or the team the championship.
“I have learned from this that if I have a chance to go to a championship and it means even more, then I am ready for it.”
Add Comment